Rain and coastal spray from lakes and oceans contain enough dissolved gases, carbonic acid, chlorides, sulfates, nitrates, ammonia and particulate matter to make them chemically active. Similarly, most ground and municipally supplied water, while generally safe for drinking, cooking, washing and bathing, still contains enough salts, hard water minerals, bacteria, organic and inorganic contaminates and chlorinated water treatment chemicals to also be chemically active.
When either source of water is allowed to evaporate on most siliceous and nonsiliceous surfaces such as glass, porcelain, ceramic, marble, granite, polyurethane, polyester, polyacrylic, melamine/phenolic resins and polycarbonate, it combines with ordinary soil to promote the formation, adhesion and build-up of insoluble mineral deposits, lime scale, rust, soap scum and foodstuff. This ongoing exposure to chemically active water contributes directly to increased soil buildup and to the costly surface damaging cycle that results from scraping and scrubbing with harsh cleaners and cleansers to remove the insoluble soil.
Thus, until rain, ground and municipally furnished water is completely deionized and demineralized, any exterior glass (such as windows, patio doors and store fronts) exposed to rain or spray from oceans, lakes and ground sprinklers, etc. and any kitchen and bath surface (such as windows, sinks, counters, ranges, ovens, cooking and washing appliances, bathtubs and shower enclosures) exposed to tap water and water-containing spills and splatters that are allowed to evaporate on the surface remain subject to the formation, adhesion and buildup of insoluble soil.
To remove insoluble soil, homemakers and cleaning professionals have turned to stronger and stronger cleaning aids including powerful acids, alkalis and a broad range of abrasive cleansers. The inevitable result of using such harsh cleaning aids is a surface destroying cycle. The stronger the cleaning action, the more it opens the microscopic pores and increases the hydrophilicity of the surface. The more open and vulnerable the pores, the deeper the new soil penetrates and the greater its adhesion and build-up, and the stronger the cleaning action required to remove the soil with greater and greater destruction of the surface finish. Although microscopic at first, this cycle ultimately leads to surfaces that are visibly rough, exhibit the loss of color and sheen, and become more prone to soiling and microbiological contamination.
Traditional abrasive powders and creams (such as Kitchen Kleanser®, Comet®, Ajax®, Bon Ami®, Zud®, Bar Keepers Friend®, Soft Scrub®, Glass Scrub® and Miracle Scrub®) cleanse the surface of buildup by scraping and scrubbing the soil primarily with a surfactant and mechanical action. While such cleansers are more or less effective in removing the soil and microbial buildup, they typically leave a surface that has become more microscopically irregular, more water wettable (hydrophilic) and more prone to the adhesion and buildup of new soil and microbial contamination.
Also, it is well known that bacteria (like e-coli and salmonella, etc.), virus (like the norovirus and herpes, etc.) and fungi (like mold and mildew, etc.) can be effectively mitigated with a broad range of sterilants, disinfectants and sanitizers. It is also known that hydrogen peroxide, ethyl alcohol, isopropyl alcohol and quaternary compounds are effective sterilants, disinfectants and sanitizers.
However, both traditional abrasive cleansers to remove insoluble buildup and sterilants, disinfectants and sanitizers to kill disease-producing microorganisms are typically only one-time compositions that provide no long term protection against soil buildup or microbial contamination. In fact, in our fast paced, fast moving society, the resoiling and recontamination of everyday surfaces is an ongoing, continuing and virtually instant process.
Although abrasive cleansers also remove microbial contamination while removing insoluble buildup from surfaces, the reverse is not true for sterilants, disinfectants and sanitizers that are usually ineffective against either the formation, adhesion and buildup of insoluble soil or its removal. Consequently, in terms of surface care, the use of abrasive cleansers negates any residual anti-microbial activity that may result from the use of sterilants, disinfectants or sanitizers.
It has been established that water and soil repellent surfaces significantly reduce the formation, adhesion and buildup of insoluble soil and that the water and soil repellency of surfaces can be improved by the use of silicone compositions. There has been extensive research and development involving silicone compositions for rendering surfaces water repellent. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 2,612,458 (Stedman) discloses the application of substituted polysilicanes to windshields to achieve repellency. U.S. Pat. No. 2,923,653 (Matlin et al.) discloses improved compositions employing alkoxy groups in the polysilicane to improve the repellency. U.S. Pat. No. 2,962,390 (Fain et al.) describes a paste containing a solid rubbing agent and an alkyl alkoxy silane which when rubbed on a glass surface provides repellency. U.S. Pat. No. 3,244,541 (Fain et al.) discloses acidic solutions of alkyl alkoxy silane monomers that produce rain repellent films on glass and which are also solvent resistant.
U.S. Pat. No. 3,579,540 (Ohlhausen) discloses water repellent film-forming compositions of alkylpolysiloxanes and acid, or alkylpolysiloxanes, acid and solvent which result in durable and effective water repellent films on various surfaces. It was the practical application of the 1971 '540 patent that spawned hundreds of products, many of which are still being manufactured and marketed for home, auto and commercial uses today. Some non-limiting examples are Rain-X®, Invisible Shield®, Rain Clear®, Shower Shield®, Clear Shield®, Hydro Shield®, Rain Vision®, Rain Away®, Crystal Coat®, Water Shield®, Poly Glass®, Surface Shield®, Glass Coat®, Slick Shield®, Micro Plus® and others.
Further improvements in solvent/VOC free compositions for treating porous and nonporous surfaces have been made as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,432,181 (Ludwig and Ohlhausen). The '181 patent satisfied a need which existed for soil and water repellent compositions that eliminate solvents and utilize the silicone more effectively and economically. Additional improvements in soil and water repellent compositions were made by providing physiologically acceptable compositions that were non-corrosive and non-irritating to the eyes and skin of the user in accordance with Federal Hazardous Substances Act and Consumer Product Safety Commission 16 CFR 1500 Guidelines as disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 6,676,733 (Ludwig and Ohlhausen).
Many different types of hard and soft surfaces have also been cleaned of soluble soil, provided with a water and soil repellent finish and rendered antimicrobial by coating with different agents. For example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,994,890, which issued on Feb. 7, 2006 (Ohlhausen and Ludwig), discloses a “Cleaning and Multifunctional Coating Composition Containing An Organosilane Quaternary Compound and Methods of Using” from aqueous systems with hydrogen peroxide. Although such compositions are exceptionally effective in removing water and oil soluble soil from surfaces while simultaneously providing a water and soil repellent barrier coating for easier cleaning and to reduce microbial contamination, they do not satisfactorily or completely remove insoluble buildup.
Organosilane quaternary nitrogen compounds have been employed effectively in eliminating and/or reducing microbial contamination when applied to a variety of surfaces. For instance, bacterial, viral and fungal contamination may be eliminated or reduced when such organosilane quaternary compounds are applied to surfaces. Commercially available quaternary ammonium organosilanes which have been used for this purpose include 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyldimethyloctadecyl ammonium chloride, 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyldidecylmethyl ammonium chloride, and 3-(trimethoxysilyl)propyltetradecyldimethyl ammonium chloride. The following patents and patent applications disclose the use of siliconized and/or non-siliconized quaternaries, solvents and surfactants/detergents for the cleaning and/or water repellent treatment of substrates: U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,028; U.S. Pat. No. 4,005,030; U.S. Pat. No. 6,559,111; U.S. Pat. No. 6,897,191; U.S. Pat. No. 6,809,072; U.S. Publ. No. 2005/0089695; U.S. Publ. No. 2005/0020474; U.S. Publ. No. 2003/0109395; U.S. Pat. No. 6,881,247; U.S. Publ. No. 2002/0091641 and U.S. Pat. No. 5,426,204.
Notwithstanding the improvements that have been made over many decades of research and development regarding cleaning or coating compositions for various surfaces, there still exists the need for further improvements.